LET'S MOVE ON:
Tennis legends Pete Sampras (left) and Andre Agassi greet each other before last night's exhibition at the Garden. The two had gotten in a tiff during a benefit match last year. Photo: Paul J. Bereswill

LET’S MOVE ON: Tennis legends Pete Sampras (left) and Andre Agassi greet each other before last night’s exhibition at the Garden. The two had gotten in a tiff during a benefit match last year. (Paul J. Bereswill)

It’s over, says Pete Sampras, meaning his anger at Andre Agassi, who mocked his rival’s alleged cheap tipping habits in Agassi’s book and then on the Indian Wells court during a doubles match to benefit Haiti 11 months ago.

“It’s unfortunate what happened; Andre apologized,” Sampras said yesterday morning. “I don’t have any bad things to say about Andre.”

“That’s not what you said back there [behind the curtain],” said Ivan Lendl, at the other end of the dais from his old foil John McEnroe.

Over? It’s never completely over with these guys. It’s safe to say Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, doubles partners who squirmed as Sampras mocked Agassi’s pigeon-toed walk, before Agassi retaliated by pulling out his pockets, before Sampras fired a serve by Agassi’s head, are better friends than four icons who tried to turn back the clock last night in a practically no-clowning doubleheader at Madison Square Garden.

“We’ve straightened it out,” Agassi said before losing 6-3, 7-5 to Sampras. “As I have said 150 times, it was a big mistake on my part.”

Not for box-office purposes, it wasn’t. The Garden was close to sold-out for the old-time’s sake of watching players nostalgic mostly for the joy of beating each other one more time. For four middle-aged warriors who combined for 827 weeks at No. 1, limitations were physical, not mental.

McEnroe, who sprained an ankle in the warmup, limped through nine games of a first-to-eight wins format against Lendl before retiring up 6-3.

“I’m just disappointed because I thought I could show the people that hard work pays off,” McEnroe said. “It’s nice to feel like we can still do it, plus [he and Lendl] have a lot of history.

“It’s easier to look at each other in a more bemused way than in the past. Maybe one out of his 10 jokes is now funny.”

They didn’t like each other then, tolerate each other now for the purposes of making a buck and in McEnroe’s case, to stay forever young, because he doesn’t think it’s over for him at 52. He reacted angrily to a question about the decline of Federer at 29, and was defensive about Novak Djokovic’s intrusion into Federer’s fading rivalry with Nadal.

“It seems like you guys’ job is how quickly you can write somebody off or build something up and tear it down,” said McEnroe.

“I’d be surprised if Roger doesn’t win another couple majors and if Nadal doesn’t win at least four or five more, depending upon his physical health.

“I’m happy Djokovic has stepped it up, that makes it even more interesting.”

Indeed, perhaps it’s not yet time to put the greatest male rivalry there ever was onto the back burner, because that back burner is still on medium for some of the next-greatest rivalries there ever were. They never completely die, 17,165 last night serving witness.

“It’s more nostalgic for me now,” said Sampras. “The most important thing tonight was to put on a good show.

“But I only have one speed. When I have the ball, I serve hard, that’s how I’m built.”